Verify: Can You Stop Robocalls?

Does it feel like you’re getting more of those annoying robocalls from telemarketers, all day and night?

It does to us.

And we wondered, can you stop them? So, we put our VERIFY fact checkers on it.

People in the U.S. received more than 2.4 Billion robocalls each month each month last year. Youmail, a company working to stop them, estimates 16 million robocalls were made in the month of May to the 336 area code alone.

The majority of robocalls were outlawed back in 2009. You’re only supposed to get them if you give a business your number. So why does it feel like your phone is ringing off the hook?

The Federal Trade Commission says the answer is easy.

The internet made it cheaper and easier for scammers to make illegal calls from anywhere in the world.

On top of that, fewer people have landlines, so legitimate telemarketers and scammers are going after people’s cell phones.

Now, you might think ‘but I signed up for the Do Not Call list!’

But Scammers can fake or spoof caller ID information, so the number you see on screen might not be the one that’s actually calling. That means, even if you report it, it can be nearly impossible to track down the real caller. And the caller might not be here in the U.S., which adds another layer of difficulty.

So, no. You can’t completely stop robocalls.

You can cut down on the number of calls you get – apps like Youmail and Nomorobo are made for that.

The FTC says you should always report spam numbers because it does help them track down some of the culprits.